County asks FEMA to reconsider decision on tornado funds

Friday

Aug 29, 2008 at 12:01 AMAug 29, 2008 at 8:18 PM

The Newton County Commission has joined several other elected officials asking the Federal Emergency Management Agency to reconsider its denial of public disaster assistance funds for disaster cleanup related to the May 10 tornado.

John Ford

The Newton County Commission has joined several other elected officials asking the Federal Emergency Management Agency to reconsider its denial of public disaster assistance funds for disaster cleanup related to the May 10 tornado.

In a letter dated Aug. 25 to Michael Chertoff, director of the federal Department of Homeland Security, Presiding Commissioner Jerry Carter and commissioners Jerry Black and Jack Sanders asked FEMA to reconsider its decision to deny more than $6 million in public disaster assistance.

“Newton County often gives rather than asks for help, but the reality is that the aftermath of this disaster is more than even we can reasonably be expected to bear alone,” the letter states. “It is for these reasons we respectfully request FEMA authorize the public assistance declaration for Newton County.”

“FEMA has been so good to us in the past,” said Carter. “We feel like they will find a way to give us some more help. If we make a compelling appeal to them, they will help us.”

Gary Roark, Newton County’s director of emergency management, recently estimated it would take $4 million to $5 million to take care of debris removal alone.

“That’s beyond the capacity of the county to take care of it,” he told the newspaper in July. “It’s an overwhelming amount — that’s what it amounts to. The county just doesn’t have it. It’s important to get this approval by FEMA or the director of homeland security.”

The commission’s request joins that of Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt, who wrote Chertoff on July 24 stating he was concerned that the state’s initial request and subsequent appeal were denied solely because Missouri did not meet the per capita indicator directed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The federal Stafford Act, a 1988 amendment to the act which governs federal disaster assistance, prohibits the federal government from denying assistance based on an arithmetic formula or sliding scale of income or population. Yet, the governor said in his letter, the per capita indicator was the only area in which this disaster didn’t meet FEMA’s pre-established disaster consideration factors.

“Residents of these small communities want to rebuild and start anew,” the governor wrote.
“Having observed and discussed the effects of these tornadoes, I know you appreciate the enormity of the task at hand. For this reason, I ask that you ensure that our initial public assistance request and our appeal were given appropriate consideration, beyond just the state per capita indicator. In seeking to ensure that every possible recovery resource is examined and exhausted to facilitate recovery, I ask that you re-examine our public assistance request to make available much needed recovery resources.”

County officials have also been in contact with Seventh District Congressman Roy Blunt as well as U.S. Sens. Claire McCaskill and Christopher S. “Kit” Bond to push for the federal disaster assistance.